Electronic devices often include one or more connector receptacles though which they may provide and receive power and data. This power and data may be conveyed over cables that may include wire conductors, fiber optic cables, or some combination of these or other conductors. Cable assemblies may include a connector insert at each end of a cable. The connector inserts may be inserted into receptacles in the communicating electronic devices.
These receptacles may be a relatively large electrical component having a housing, shielding, contacts, and other structures. These receptacles may have an opening aligned with an opening in an electronic device. These receptacles may be mounted on a printed circuit board such as a main logic or motherboard.
Accordingly, conventional connector receptacles may be a component that is manufactured as a separate device, then placed on a printed circuit board and aligned with an opening in an electronic device. Electrical paths for power and data may be formed by conductors in a cable, pins in a connector insert at an end of the cable, pins in a connector receptacle, and traces on a printed circuit board.
But these connector receptacles may be relatively large. This may be undesirable since electronic devices are becoming ever smaller over time. Using a large receptacle may limit how small a device may be made, it may limit the functionality that may be included in the device, or it may limit both how small a device may be made and the functionality that may be included in the device.
Moreover, many smaller devices may not include a printed circuit board due to size constraints. These devices may instead include conductive pathways formed of flexible circuit boards or similar structures.
Thus, what is needed are connector receptacles that may be space efficient and provide direct connection to flexible circuit boards.